No Good Deed

People get fired for a cornucopia of reasons—stealing, lying, ineptitude, laziness—but it’s rare that someone gets fired for actually DOING HIS JOB (unless he works for the government, of course). Such was the case, though, for Florida lifeguard, Tomas Lopez. You see, Lopez was recently terminated from his position after, wait for it, saving a drowning man.

Tomas Lopez: lifeguard, rule-breaker

The drowning man, who has yet to be identified, had the misfortune of starting to drown 1,500 feet outside of the lifeguard-patrolled area, or, more specifically, in the “swim at your own risk” portion of the ocean. According to Lopez’s boss, Lopez broke the rules by leaving the protected area of the beach to save the man, and was, therefore, terminated from his position. I understand that rules are rules, but c’mon! What was he supposed to do? Let the guy drown? Yeah, that would’ve been great PR for your beach, sir. “Lifeguard watches as man drowns.” I mean, you can’t train someone to save lives and then ask him not to.

But it gets better.

Not only did they fire Lopez, but they also fired several other lifeguards who, when asked, said they’d do what Lopez did—that is, their job—given a similar situation.

They’ve all since been offered their jobs back (I’m sure the bad PR the beach has gotten has nothing to do with it), but Lopez, at least, has politely declined. I can’t say that I blame him. Who wants to work at a place, or for a boss, like that? And to that point, who wants to swim there either? I’d say that a beach where the lifeguards get fired for saving drowning people is a place I’d prefer to steer well clear of.  

So, remember, if you find yourself swimming at a certain beach in Florida, you most definitely swim at your own risk.